Deadly Cobra Bites, Kills Its Defender

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Deadly Cobra Bites, Kills Its Defender

AP



VANCOUVER, British Columbia - A snake handler who founded a group to dispel the fear and misunderstanding of snakes was bitten by his Egyptian cobra and died as he pleaded for help, police said.

Larry Moor of suburban Langley ran screaming from the room where he kept his snakes shortly after he was bit Thursday.

"Take me to a hospital," the 45-year-old man pleaded to pedestrians before collapsing on the sidewalk.

He died within seconds, said Sgt. Lloyd Plante of the Maple Ridge Royal Canadian Mounted Police.

Moor founded the B.C. Association of Reptile Owners to help dispel the fear and misunderstanding of snakes. He frequently visited schools to teach children about the proper care and handling of snakes.

He liked to point out that only a small percentage of snakes are truly dangerous - the dark, narrow-hooded Egyptian cobra native to Africa and the Middle East among them.

Fellow snake lovers were shocked to learn Moor had made a fatal error.

"He was always so careful," said Christine Schramm, who owns 200 of the reptiles.


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